Fire Management

The fire program at Crane Meadows National Wildlife Refuge (NWR) focus on prescribed burning for habitat and wildlife management and wildfirecontrol. Though the main reason for conducting prescribed burning at Crane Meadows NWR is to restore and maintain a healthy Refuge ecosystem, fuel reduction for wildfire management is also a benefit. Prescribed burning consumes dead vegetative fuels under controlled conditions, reducing the wildland fuel load. Reducing these fuel loads under controlled conditions facilitates the suppression of wildfires, should they start.

For more information on wildfires in Minnesota, see the Minnesota Forest Fire Information Center at: http://www.dnr.state.mn.us/forestry/fire/